Cotton's Interview with a Photographer: Andrew Peacock

Andrew Peacock is an adventurer, influencer, artist, and story teller. His work reflects his experiences, travels, life in Queensland, Australia and abroad.

Here is our latest installment of Cotton's "Interview with a Photographer":

Cotton Carrier: Where do you call home?

Andrew Peacock: I’m very lucky to live in Noosa Heads, Queensland, Australia but I also have US residency with a base in Santa Barbara, California. You can’t beat an ocean loving lifestyle lived on both sides of the Pacific!

CC: How long have you taken photographs for unprofessionally and professionally?

AP: I first started shooting slide film seriously in 1996 when I became a contributor to what was then the Lonely Planet Images stock library (subsequently bought by Getty). I wouldn’t describe my work as particularly professional back then but over the years there’s been a slow progression to shooting professionally as I defined what genre I wanted to concentrate on – Adventure Travel. Now I work for Lindblad Expeditions as a Photo Instructor and contribute to a few different stock libraries. But let’s be clear I also have a career as an emergency room doctor.

CC: How would you define your style as a photographer?

AP: I think of myself as an opportunist. I rarely pre-plan what I plan to shoot and I’m good at working with whatever conditions confront me. I’m fairly structured in my approach to composition and am constantly waging a battle with myself to get more creative in the way I ‘see’ things!

CC: Have you ever gone to photography school?

AP: I tried to complete a course at my local college many years ago but failed dismally and dropped out because I was so bored.

CC: Where is your favorite place or thing to shoot?

AP: Antarctica is endlessly fascinating for a photographer and also an important part of the world from an environmental standpoint, so it’s important to bring back images that speak of it’s beauty and fragility to those who haven’t been able to travel there yet. Luckily I’m heading there again very soon to do some work for Oceanwide Expeditions.

CC: What Camera(s) / Lenses / Packs do you use?

AP: I shoot with Canon DSLR’s – 5DMarkIV and 7DMarkII and have numerous L series lenses the newest of which is the 600mm f4 which is an investment in my desire to concentrate more on wildlife photography in 2018.

CC: What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever done to get “The Shot”?

AP: Sat quietly in a sea kayak as an inquisitive 20 foot Minke whale swam directly toward me while I clicked the shutter hoping I wasn’t about to end up in the freezing Antarctic water with an unprotected DSLR.

CC: Who has inspired you as a photographer?

AP: Galen Rowell was the adventure photographer I always looked up to as I learned to shoot slide film and began a life of exploring the mountains and rock climbing.

CC: What advice would you tell an aspiring photographer?

AP: Don’t’ look to social media as your only guide to what constitutes ‘good’ photography. Find a way to tell a story with images and look beyond the clichéd images that currently saturate social media.

CC: Can you share a photographic resource you personally use?

AP: Model releases are important in the stock photography world and I have an iPhone app called Easy Release which makes it all very simple. ‘The Dam Book – Digital Asset Management for Photographers” was very useful as I learned about workflow and backing up and there will be a version 3 sometime in 2018 – I hope!

CC: How has photography shaped your day to day?

AP: It’s certainly an area of focus on most days when I’m not working as a doctor and much of my travel is now planned around photography assignments.

CC: Where has photography taken you and opened up new experiences?

AP: I’ve added photography services to my role as an expedition doctor in far flung locations like the remote Ross Sea in Antarctica where I was a ship’s doctor but equally learned more about my local area by shooting images for social media use by my local tourism body here in Noosa. Working with Lindblad Expeditions last year took me to Iceland and I’ll be there again this year along with a month in Southeast Alaska, working on the ships allows me to meet interesting passengers from all over the world which is a true privilege.

CC: Any exciting photographic events in coming up you’d like to share?

AP: I’m about to lead a photo tour to Ladakh in Northern India hoping to spot and photograph snow leopards and I’m also hopefully heading to Kenya to do some work for the Grévy’s Zebra Trust in 2018 which will be my first wildlife assignment in Africa which will be exciting for sure.

CC: Have you been able to forge relationships with any companies that provide support for your photography work?

AP: I’m lucky to be part of the Photographic Masters program at Ted’s Camera Stores in Australia, I’m a Zenfolio ambassador and I am also supported by Atlas Packs and IO Merino.

To see more of Andrew’s work check out his website or find him on Instagram @Footloosefotography and Facebook